Please tell me about the mossberg 144

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cracked butt

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I've been looking for a good target .22 for inexpensive practice on my positional shooting. The recent thread on ceiner ar-15 conversions piques my interest as I'd be able to use the same sights for highpower, but I'm really concerned about their accuracy.

I'm also considering acquiring a SavageMKII rifle with the target aperture sights, but noone around me carries them and they look at me crosseyed when I inquire about them. I also considered buying a stock MKII and adding sights, but the sights would be more expensive than the rifle and I would have a lighter barrel profile than I'm looking for.

I recently found a Mossberg 144LSB rifle with factory aperture sights, but don't know much abot the rifle or how much its worth. I've shot the Mossberg 44s a long time ago and liked them alot, but this rifle seems a bit more upscale than the M44. Does anyone own one of these rifles or know about what they are worth? (I did several internet searches but prices seem to be all over the place from about $200-600.)
 
I love older Mossberg 22s because I grew up shooting my Dad's Mossberg. In the past 3 years I've bought a 44US for $250, a 152 for $225 and a 340M for $75. If you periodically snoop around eBay, you can find old Mossberg rifle sights.
 
Well I picked it up for a little under $300.
Its in mechanically very good shape with a few dings and scratches in the stock. It has the mossberg 331? rear sight and what I think is a Lyman front globe sight.
 
Like all old Mossy .22's they have a reputation as being absolute tack drivers. Mossberg offered quite an array of rimfires from the 30's through the 50's that were very high quality compared to anything. I've got a 46B which was built in the mid 40's with a nicer piece of walnut than my Weatherby Mark V Deluxe. And I've never shot one that wouldn't put most modern .22's to shame. Most Mossy's came with great iron sights. Usually a rear peep, mid barrel and a selectable front sight with 4 different posts. You just slid the sight hood forward and snapped up whichever post you wanted. Then when the sight hood slid back it locked it in place. What kind of sights are on the 144? And we need pics.
 
I'll put some picks up in the next few days, but the front sight has a threaded hood that holds a sight insert in place - right now its the typical smallbore target circle insert, the rear sight from what I've found out was made by mossberg and is fairly similar to a Lyman 57 sight. The rifle also has a dovetail for a scope mount:cool:

The store I bought it from also had a stevens US marked target rifle and another target rifle that was a remington 521-T I think. The Stevens had a really nice rear sight- looked like some sort of Parker-Hale sight, but it was missing its hand stop and sling swivels.
 
cb,

The old Mossy .22's are nice....

Just two weeks ago I took one of the US-44's I bought from the CMP back when for $65 out to a Rimfire Prone match. While I've been shooting Highpower X-Course for some years this was my first ever rimfire prone match.

The old Mossberg did me proud..... I managed a 1499-34X (Out of 1600) for Fourth Place in a field of some pretty fancy target .22's..... Anschutz, 40-X's, H&R 12's, etc....

They are fun.....

Best,
Swampy

Garands forever
 
Very nice. It's refined version of the 44 all the way around IMO. Looks like that one's in great shape too. I'm sure you'll enjoy it. I'm glad most people haven't caught on to how good the old Mossy's are. That keeps the prices on solid ground for the rest of us.
 
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